2017 Fonseca Vintage Port

Product Description

The complex, layered fruit typical of Fonseca dominates this massive, powerful wine.

Fonseca has been part of the first category of Vintage Port wine producers since the mid-19th century. Fonseca Vintage Port wines are known for their lush fruitiness that develops great opulence and complexity with age. Their wines appeal to the enthusiast and connoisseur, perhaps more than the Vintage Ports of any other house, because they are the result of inspired production and a deep knowledge of viticulture and terroir.

Vintage Port wines represent the best of the products of an exceptional year. Unlike Port wines that age in wood, Vintage Port wines will continue to age and improve in bottle for decades, inscribing in their character both the characteristics of the vineyard and the influence of the winemaker.

The company’s Vintage Port wines come from its own estates: Cruzeiro and Santo António in the Pinhão valley, which have contributed to the company’s Vintage Port blend for 100 years, as well as the Panascal estate in the Távora valley.

Tasting Notes:

A narrow magenta rim around a purple-black core. The nose opens with an explosion of dense, juicy berries, mixed with fresher, more vibrant red berry aromas. A schisty minerality keeps this lush fruitiness in evidence. At this stage, the nose is still reserved and discreetly aromatic, revealing leafy balsamic fragrances and notes of sawed cedar wood.

The first impression on the palate and nose is of dense and very concentrated fruit, which meanwhile explodes on the palate and persists on the long finish. The texture is enveloping and velvety, but the taut, robust tannins and crisp, continuous acidity provide firmness and structure. The complex, layered fruit typical of Fonseca dominates this massive, powerful wine.

Notes on Viticultural Year:

Despite a cold and dry start to the year, the first shoots appeared earlier than usual, around March 10. Spring remained unusually dry, with only about 7mm of rain in Pinhão in the typically wet April. These conditions accelerated vine growth, causing early flowering in early May. The first three weeks of June recorded very high temperatures and the veraison began around the 18th, much earlier than usual. Dry conditions continued through the end of September, but temperatures dropped a bit in August, bringing relatively cool nights. As expected, the harvest reached maturity very early.

Quinta do Panascal was the first Fonseca property to begin harvesting, starting on September 6th. The two properties in Vale do Pinhão, Cruzeiro and Santo António, started on the 10th and 17th respectively. These were the earliest starting dates in a generation. The berries had very thick skins and produced very dense musts with impressive depth of color. Although production was low overall, a large proportion of the wines produced were of exceptional quality and showed high potential early on.